Mastodawn

Christine Lemmer-Webber Oct 8

It's really fucking insulting that Musk wore that "What Would Orwell Think?" shirt, itself Orwellian. Especially because we actually *know* what Orwell would think.

I've been reading a lot of Orwell's articles and letters from around 1939-1943 and it's really eerie just how much aligns. Orwell was writing for left-leaning newsletters that literally called themselves "anti-fascist" and was more afraid than anything about the world domination of fascism and nazi'ism.

Christine Lemmer-Webber

We know what Orwell would think because Orwell was literally writing about many of the same things that are happening right now, just 90 years earlier. He's very clear about what he thinks, and when he writes, you realize just how many of the same things are happening *right now*.

It's right there. We know what Orwell would think. He wrote about it.

Christine Lemmer-Webber Oct 8

I'm thinking of writing a blogpost with excerpts of Orwell's writing from the period because it's incredibly prescient and eerie and insightful and I am learning a lot by reading it.

Christine Lemmer-Webber Oct 8

If you want to read what Orwell thought, there is a book written from this exact time frame prescient to this moment in history collecting Orwell's letters: "My Country, Left to Right"

I highly recommend getting a copy

EDIT: copy here https://orwell.ru/library/articles/My_Country/english/e_mcrol (thx @Greg ) though that's only of one of the letters. There's many others in the *book* "My Country, Left to Right"

Christine Lemmer-Webber Oct 8

If you read nothing else of Orwell's writings, read this review of his of Mein Kampf https://bookmarks.reviews/george-orwells-1940-review-of-mein-kampf/

George Orwell's 1940 Review of Mein Kampf

Book Marks

Christine Lemmer-Webber Oct 8

Most of Orwell's writings here: https://orwell.ru/library/index_en

AJ Sadauskas Oct 10

@cwebber Amazing summary.

The only thing I'd add is we know what he'd think because *he voluntarily enlisted* on the side of the Anarchists against Franco's fascists in the Spanish Civil War.

He even wrote a whole bloody book about it. Homage to Catalonia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homage_to_Catalonia

Homage to Catalonia - Wikipedia

Jared White (ResistanceNet ✊)Oct 8

@cwebber The man could write.

(I read 1984 once, when I was much younger, and it is the most frightening thing I've ever read in my life. The ending still haunts me…)

Jules 🍺Oct 8

@jaredwhite @cwebber I could not finish 1984, tried reading some of the appendices about things like minispeak, absolutely terrifying 😔

Bill Hooker Oct 8

@cwebber I think people are drawn to struggle and sacrifice because it gives them a sense of meaning without having to think too deeply about what that meaning IS. I wish they would so willingly struggle and sacrifice to end war, mend the environment and cure disease. It's been tried -- war on cancer, and so forth -- but like Orwell's tin pacifists, it won't do. Why? WHY???

EmB Philo Oct 8

@sennoma @cwebber
What if the ‘tin #pacifists have already died a on few hills; even significant ones, and the #dystopia is accelerating like an avalanche of boulders?

Christine Malec Oct 11

@cwebber Few, that was chilling...

@cwebber @Greg I see the print edition credits his wife as an editor

A recent post on the Fediverse about her helping with Animal Farm reminded me it's time to re-read that in addition to already having 1984 in the queue

Gonna look for a copy of My Country Right or Left as well

Display Name Oct 8

@cwebber don't think, do, please. I'll follow to not miss it

StrikeVonNice Oct 8

@cwebber Please do. I would be very interested in the context Orwell was writing, who he was writing for, and how that relates to our current situation and reading today.

mike morris Oct 8

@cwebber Go for it!

@cwebber Hope many people interested also read about and the poetry of “Orwell’s” ex-wife Eileen. After I had chanced on reading a review of the many biographers who wrote about either “George” or Eileen. I wanted to know more about Eileen. She wrote a poem in 1934 about 1984…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eileen_Blair

Eileen Blair - Wikipedia

@cwebber I mean he also literally traveled to Spain to join the Spanish Civil War and fight against the Fascists, but 2 + 2 = 5, I guess

Lazarou Monkey Terror 🚀💙🌈Oct 8

@ensoyote @cwebber that thing of "I thought Elon was quite clever until he spoke about something of which I know"

Coding, Space, George Orwell, is there nothing he can't superficially research and get wrong?

#ElonMusk #Musk

athena_rising Oct 8

@cwebber A one-class lesson focused on "Notes on Nationalism" turned into 2 1/2 classes. My senior student is quite fascinated with Orwell's work, and I feel like giving myself a little pay on the back for convincing him that _1984_ was worth reading (even if many consider it "old" and "overdone" - another student's comment).

I highly recommend NoN as another must-read.

craignicol Oct 8

@cwebber not just writing of course. He was off to kill Fascists before it was popular.

WhichOne'sPink 🇫🇮Oct 8

@NickSchwanck The Francoists were much realer fascists than any USian pro-life conservative in the modern day.

WhichOne'sPink 🇫🇮Oct 9

@light By what measure?

Curioso 🍉 🇺🇦 (jgg)Oct 10

@light @NickSchwanck

Give. Them. Time.

They are only warming up now.